You can go to http://t.co/t7bd94H and see the report that has been issued by the GCRTF of the Kentucky Baptist Convention. All I can say is wow and way to go KBC! This state convention has aggressively committed itself to a GCR for the churches of Kentucky. This is a great day in the life of that state convention, and it is my prayer that many more will follow in their footsteps. Their report is … [Read More]
Facts and Feelings from Orlando: The Road Back for Young Leaders and the SBC, Part 2
In part 1 of my post (link), I pointed out that the SBC messengers were not as young as we might have hoped. Since facts are our friends, we need to ask, “Why?” Certainly, this is not just an issue for Southern Baptists. Five decades ago, few would have written an article feeling the need to defend the existence and relevance of denominations, yet I felt compelled to do that very thing in the May … [Read More]
Facts and Feelings from Orlando: The Road Back for Young Leaders and the SBC, Part 1
It sure looked a lot younger at the SBC annual meeting this year. Many of us commented on the presence, involvement and impact of young leaders and an intergenerational look to the meeting.
The Pastors’ Conference elected “contemporary” (sorry to use that word) leaders in their late 30’s, early 40’s. The Baptist 21 (www.baptisttwentyone.com) panel boasted an attendance of “around” 1300, many of whom were first time SBC attendees. Pastors’ Conference speakers, as well as the … [Read More]
Man On a Global Mission
Over the past several years, Southeastern Seminary President Danny Akin has been a tireless advocate for reaching the nations with the gospel. Since 2004, he has led SEBTS to deepen her already considerable commitment to coupling orthodox theological education with a passion for the Great Commission. He has also been one of the most vocal proponents of Southern Baptists as a whole building upon the theological foundation laid by the Conservative Resurgence and embracing a Great … [Read More]
Post-SBC Reflections
The SBC is over.
It really is. The “convention” is a meeting that meets once a year and that meeting has closed. Now, we will all go back to our locally autonomous churches and work to fulfill the mission of God. Hopefully what was accomplished at this year’s annual meeting will help that work press forward. But ultimately, the Great Commission is given to believers and the church, not denominational structures, entities, and employees.
But, because I … [Read More]
Toward a Unified SBC
The SBC annual meeting is rapidly approaching and, as it does, the back and forth across the Internet seems to have accelerated pace. Pastors and denominational leaders have rushed to publish their views, sometimes gently and sometimes not so gently, but publish they have. If the secular press decides to take a gander at blogs, news sites and Twitter feeds, they will likely have no shortage of evidence to substantiate their long held belief that … [Read More]
GCRTF Report Challenges to all Southern Baptists (7): Challenges for all Southern Baptist Leaders
GCRTF Report Challenges to all Southern Baptists (7): Challenges for all Southern Baptist Leaders
By Danny Akin and Nathan Akin
Southern Baptists exist as a convention of free churches voluntarily cooperating together to combine efforts for the “propagation of the gospel.” The original goal of our founding Southern Baptists forefathers was really that simple. Over the years we have developed various structures and programs (some of these are good and still helpful, but others need to … [Read More]
GCRTF Report Challenges to all Southern Baptists (6): Challenges for the Seminaries
GCRTF Report Challenges to all Southern Baptists (6): Challenges for the Seminaries
By Danny Akin and Bruce Riley Ashford
Southern Baptist seminaries, like any other entity, need to give extended reflection upon their vision and mission. We must never lose sight of the fact that our calling is to serve the churches of the SBC; our vision, mission, and core values must reflect the churches of the Southern Baptist convention, in whose service we were created … [Read More]
GCRTF Report Challenges to all Southern Baptists (5): Challenges for LifeWay, ERLC, and Guidestone
GCRTF Report Challenges to all Southern Baptists (5): Challenges for LifeWay, ERLC, and Guidestone
By Danny Akin and Ryan Hutchinson
The Great Commission Resurgence Task Force (GCRTF) has challenged LifeWay, GuideStone Financial Resources, and the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) to never forget their service to the local church. Each one of these ministries of the Southern Baptist Convention, whether receiving Cooperative Program (CP) funds or not, all stand in the place as a form … [Read More]
GCRTF Report Challenges to all Southern Baptists (4): Challenges for Local Associations and State Conventions
GCRTF Report Challenges to all Southern Baptists (4): Challenges for Local Associations and State Conventions
By Danny Akin and Nathan A. Finn
From almost the very beginning of our movement, likeminded autonomous Baptist churches voluntarily cooperated through local associations in evangelism, church planting, mercy ministries, and doctrinal accountability. In part because of their aversion to the societal method of cooperation, by the 1820s the Baptists of the South were further cooperating through state conventions. In 1845, they … [Read More]
